Rosa, A Woman in A Black Body

Seventy years ago, 
on the ancestral lands 
of the Muscogee
a woman in a Black body resisted the injustice 
placed upon her, 
her people and 
their ancestors.

She knew the risk 
of resisting injustice 

from lived experience,
but she chose to affirm the full humanity 
of herself, 
her people and
their ancestors.

Resisting centuries 
of dehumanizing lies,
by remaining in her seat 
she acknowledged the God-given dignity
in every fiber of her being, 
in the depths of her soul.

She joined the endless list
of people in Black bodies,
known and unknown,
who, in some way,
resisted second-class citizenship
in a nation built by their ancestors.

On that day,
the ancestors rejoiced and 
the community gathered
as Rosa Parks liberated herself
from the centuries old oppressive narrative
by shining the light of truth
on injustice in her time and place.